Archives

Blog Tour: In Exile by Alexandra Turney

Good morning my loves.

I hope you’re having a good week so far. Today’s post may be the last one in a little while. I do have a couple written and scheduled but other than those (a readathon TBR and one final blog tour), posts will be few and far between. Hate it when real life gets in the way of the life I’d like to be living hahaha! Anyway, I digress. Today is my stop on the blog tour for the brilliant In Exile by Alexandra Turney!

‘No one in this city has believed in me for two thousand years. I’m unknown and unloved. And I’m very, very ill.’ He sighed, and the sound chilled her blood. ‘Give me your hand.’ Dionysus, god of wine and divine ecstasy, is reborn in modern Rome. He doesn’t understand how or why he’s come to be here – a pagan god in a city where he has no believers. But when he meets fifteen-year-old Grace during a chance encounter in the Ghetto, he realises he has found his first new follower. This is the beginning of Grace’s secret life, as she and her friends overcome scepticism and fear to become his worshippers, drinking his wine and taking part in bacchanals across the city. As the melancholy god lives out his exile, his teenage followers find they have everything to lose. And after the first bloodshed, they know that there’s no turning back…

My thoughts

Since picking up The Song of Achilles by Madeline Miller last year, I’ve become pretty obsessed with antiquity. So, when I received an email from the lovely Anne Carter, asking if I wanted to participate in a tour for In Exile, I put my name down immediately.

This modern take is set in 20th Century Rome, and whilst having not been there myself (it’s on the list!) I have read plenty and watched loads about this city, and this just made me even more excited for this book. In short, In Exile is a wonderful retelling with a modern twist, magical realism at its most glorious.

Grace, 15, British. Spending her teenage years drinking, exploring her sexuality and basically acting very much like the way I did at that age, but to the beautiful backdrop of The Eternal City. She reminds me in so many ways of myself at that age; perpetually bored, lacking in self-esteem and looking for adventure. Along with her friends Caroline, both beautiful and intelligent, but with quick fingers (if you read the book, you know what I mean!) and religious yet sweet as pie Sara, Grace’s life becomes infinitely more interesting when Dionysus enters their lives.

Once I finished this book, I was more than a little surprised to find out that this is a debut, because it’s so well done. It had everything that I look for in a good book; great pacing, good character development, a vivid setting and just a hint of darkness. I’ll definitely be keep an eye on Alexandra Turney and checking out anything she publishes in the future.

This smashing book is available now and I would highly recommend you pick up a copy. I brilliant read and one that I wouldn’t hesitate when recommending it to friends. 5/5 stars!

Peace and pagesAmyX

** The titles with stars have been gifted to me via the publisher in exchange for an honest review. This is not sponsored content and all views shared are my own.